The Massacre at El Mozote: A Parable of the Cold War by Mark Danner Review by: Kenneth Maxwell Foreign Affairs, Vol. 73, No. 4 (Jul. - Aug., 1994), p. 172 Published by: Council on Foreign Relations Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/20046787 . Accessed: 14/06/2014 23:11 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp . JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact
[email protected]. . Council on Foreign Relations is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Foreign Affairs. http://www.jstor.org This content downloaded from 194.29.185.230 on Sat, 14 Jun 2014 23:11:49 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=cfr http://www.jstor.org/stable/20046787?origin=JSTOR-pdf http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp Recent Books continued abm program. A note of tri umphalism over "self-styled progressive scholars [and] leftist intelligentsia" marks the book, leading in one instance to dis torting the views of a leading European liberal. Or take this example of in-depth analysis: "Most professors dislike military spending, not merely because they prefer peace to war, and spending on welfare to arms, but because professors compete with the military for public acclaim and public funds." These gratuitous remarks aside, there is much useful material here, especially on the economic underpinning of political developments. D-Day,June 6,1944: The Climactic Battle of World WarII by Stephen e. Ambrose. NewYork: Simon & Schuster, 1994, 655 pp. $30.00. A publisher's dream: on the 50th anniver sary of one of the most dramatic military events in history, a commemorative vol ume, distinguished by the voices of the men who were there. Stephen Ambrose, historian of the Second World War and biographer of his idol, Dwight D. Eisen hower, bases the best part of the book on the large files of interviews at the Eisen hower Center. He records the planning and the necessarily divergent expecta tions of D-Day, the bravery and the bar barism of the day itself. In the book? unlike in the anniversary itself?the Ger man side is fully present, its mistakes far greater than our own. The contextual history is primitive, the narrative a compelling, readable reconstruction of a day without parallel. Western Hemisphere KENNETH MAXWELL The Massacre at El Mozo te: A Parable of the Cold War. by mark danner. New York: Vintage Books, 1994,304 pp. $12.00 (paper). Mark Danner subtides his chilling account of the massacre of hundreds of men, women and children by the Salvadoran army's American-trained Adacad Battal ion in December 1981 "A Parable of the Cold War." To a degree it is, in the sense that the ideological fervor of the early 1980s provided a rationale for the tangled web of half-truths, obfuscations and moral spinelessness that still clings to many of the individuals who became involved in this sorry affair. But the truly disturbing ele ment of the story, at least in its American dimension, is that the individuals involved are not marginal characters but include many of the best and brightest of their gen eration: Thomas Enders, Elliott Abrams and A. M. Rosenthal, among others. Few reputations survive Danner's relendess investigation. It is worth noting the wall James Baker, then President Reagan's chief of staff, had carefully built between the White House and the professional diplo mats and political appointees on the front lines. "It's a dirty litde war and they don't want to touch it," is how Enders explained the lack of support from the "upper ranks" when Abrams questioned him. The mem ory of El Mozote remains inconvenient and this book is a courageous indictment in the classical tradition of American journalism. Danner has provided a striking memorial to the victims of the tragedy who?because of his effort?will not be soon forgotten. [172] FOREIGN AFFAIRS Volume73No.4 This content downloaded from 194.29.185.230 on Sat, 14 Jun 2014 23:11:49 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp Article Contents p. 172 Issue Table of Contents Foreign Affairs, Vol. 73, No. 4 (Jul. - Aug., 1994), pp. I-IV, 1-204 Front Matter Comments: Three Views on the Palestinian Future The Palestinian Future The Urge for Democracy [pp. 2-7] Arafat's Police State [pp. 8-11] Sidestepping Dependency [pp. 12-15] Negotiating with the Chinese: Or How Not to Kowtow [pp. 16-22] Where Are the Great Powers? At Home with the Kids [pp. 23-28] Essays How to Defeat Serbia [pp. 30-47] Democracy and Its Discontents [pp. 48-64] Germany's Choice [pp. 65-81] Peering into the Future [pp. 82-93] The Drug Money Maze [pp. 94-108] The Rise of the Nonprofit Sector [pp. 109-122] Beating Back Predatory Trade [pp. 123-135] Media Pervasiveness [pp. 136-144] Reviews Review Essay Review: The Measure of Diplomacy: What Makes a Strategy Grand? [pp. 146-151] Movies and Memory 'Schindler's List' and the Polish Question [pp. 152-157] Recent Books on International Relations Political and Legal Review: untitled [p. 158-158] Review: untitled [pp. 158-159] Review: untitled [p. 159-159] Review: untitled [pp. 159-160] Review: untitled [p. 160-160] Review: untitled [p. 160-160] Review: untitled [pp. 160-161] Review: untitled [p. 161-161] Review: untitled [p. 161-161] Economic, Social and Environmental Review: untitled [p. 162-162] Review: untitled [pp. 162-163] Review: untitled [p. 163-163] Review: untitled [pp. 163-164] Military, Scientific and Technological Review: untitled [p. 164-164] Review: untitled [p. 164-164] Review: untitled [p. 165-165] Review: untitled [p. 165-165] Review: untitled [p. 165-165] Review: untitled [p. 166-166] Review: untitled [p. 166-166] Review: untitled [p. 166-166] Review: untitled [p. 167-167] Review: untitled [p. 167-167] The United States Review: untitled [pp. 167-168] Review: untitled [pp. 168-169] Review: untitled [p. 169-169] Review: untitled [p. 169-169] Review: untitled [pp. 169-170] Western Europe Review: untitled [p. 170-170] Review: untitled [p. 170-170] Review: untitled [pp. 170-171] Review: untitled [p. 171-171] Review: untitled [p. 171-171] Review: untitled [pp. 171-172] Review: untitled [p. 172-172] Western Hemisphere Review: untitled [p. 172-172] Review: untitled [p. 173-173] Review: untitled [p. 173-173] Review: untitled [pp. 173-174] Review: untitled [p. 174-174] Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Republics Review: untitled [pp. 174-175] Review: untitled [p. 175-175] Review: untitled [p. 176-176] Review: untitled [pp. 176-177] Review: untitled [p. 177-177] Middle East Review: untitled [pp. 177-178] Review: untitled [p. 178-178] Review: untitled [pp. 178-179] Review: untitled [p. 179-179] Review: untitled [pp. 179-180] Review: untitled [p. 180-180] Review: untitled [p. 180-180] Review: untitled [pp. 180-181] Review: untitled [p. 181-181] Asia and the Pacific Review: untitled [pp. 181-182] Review: untitled [p. 182-182] Review: untitled [pp. 182-183] Review: untitled [p. 183-183] Review: untitled [pp. 183-184] Africa Review: untitled [p. 184-184] Review: untitled [p. 184-184] Review: untitled [p. 185-185] Review: untitled [p. 185-185] Responses: The Fight over Competitiveness: A Zero-Sum Debate? Playing to Win [pp. 186-189] Microchips, Not Potato Chips [pp. 189-192] Rule-Based Competition [pp. 192-194] Speaking Freely [pp. 194-197] Careless Arithmetic [p. 197-197] Proving My Point [pp. 198-203] Back Matter